"Men. Bring over the man who guarded the royal mausoleum today. Bring the older one over," the king ordered.
"No. Father. No," Amara stepped forward.
The king looked at her, then dismissed the guard.
Amara fell silent. Intruding on the royal mausoleum was no child's play, but she did it every year anyway. What made it easier for her was the fact that she was familiar with one of the oldest guards there.
The man had served her mother when she was alive but after she passed away, he begged the king to shift his position elsewhere, somewhere at a little distance from the palace. Somewhere he could keep guarding his little mistress, as he had phrased it when the young Amara had asked him the reason behind his request.
He had been her mother's guard since she was a child, and he accompanied her even after she married. When her mother passed away, he willingly stepped forward and asked for a demotion. Naturally, going from guarding the queen to the royal mausoleum was considered a demotion. But her father increased his salary and rank, a gesture of respect for his loyalty.
It was an unspoken game here. Everyone knew the princess would sneak into the royal mausoleum on this day. They knew she had the old man's help in it. But since the king turned a blind eye to it, the rest could only complain in silence.
"Father, please don't..." Amara's voice softened. "I am the one at fault. I will reflect on my mistakes. But even if you wish to punish James, don't fire him. At least transfer him to another post..." She trailed off when she saw the indifference on her father's face. "I'll accept your arrangements,'' she curtsied to him before taking her leave.
...
In the living room of a luxurious mansion in Monteluna.
"I'm not doing it."
Had Amara been there, she might have taken a moment to observe the man lounging on the couch. His intimidating stature made the furniture seem small, and his piercing green eyes were focused on the white-haired man sitting opposite him.
"Rafael, you're being rather willful now, aren't you?" the old man said with a shake of his head. "We've already discussed this. What more do you want? Do you want this old man to beg?"
"No need," Rafael replied calmly. "But I'm not guarding a princess. That's final."
"The Renaldi family is the only royalty of Monteluna. General Garza, head of the royal guard, got in touch with the State Security Agency some time ago to arrange for a bodyguard for their little princess who lives abroad. Even though Garza approached us, do you really think he's acting on his own? It is obvious the king ordered it."
"You are sitting in the director's chair, and yet you can't arrange a bodyguard for them? Are you telling me how pathetic you are, old man?" Rafael deadpanned.
As Rafael said, the man sitting in front of him was none other than Leonardo Wolfe, director of the State Security Agency of Monteluna. The agency was responsible for national security and held significant influence, as it was tied to both the government and the royal family.
Leonardo sighed. "Call me whatever you want, but you have to do this job."
"No."
"It's not that I haven't considered other candidates. But none of them are fit for the job. Our agency deals with terrorism, espionage, and organized crime. My men are trained like rabid dogs for those tasks. They can be far too scary and much too violent. If the princess went crying to her father, my humble abode would be in a dire state."
A brief pause followed.
Leonardo's eyes briefly lit with hope, only to dim again when Rafael spoke.
"No," Rafael said firmly. "You know my rules."
"I know..." Leonardo sighed.
From his teenage years, Rafael had been trained in combat, espionage, and survival. By the time he reached adulthood, he was recruited into an off-the-books special operations unit known as "The Black Wolves," a group tasked with handling high-risk, unsanctioned missions for global powers.
Nobody knew what transpired during his time there, but after four years, Rafael left the unit and became a special forces operative. That was when Leonardo first encountered this brilliant man, under special circumstances.
To Leonardo's surprise, Rafael eventually left the prestigious position and transitioned into private security by his mid-twenties. He had become renowned for his expertise in high-profile protection following that. Yet, like many geniuses, Rafael carried his own struggles.
Rafael, too, had a dark past. Leonardo couldn't help but cough dryly, remembering it.
Rafael shot him a glare.
As it happened to be, Rafael's first ever client when he became a private security expert had been a duchess. She had a terrible relationship with her husband and multiple affairs on the side.
When she saw Rafael, her predatory interest turned toward her young and handsome bodyguard but initially she kept her intentions under wraps. She hired him and kept him close for some time before extending her claws towards him. The more Rafael distanced himself and remained aloof, the more the duchess tried to seduce him.